


Day 11: Mermaid

by CosmoandWanda



Series: AU August [11]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: AU Yeah AUgust (Miraculous Ladybug), Drabble, F/M, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-12
Updated: 2018-08-12
Packaged: 2019-06-26 08:43:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15659751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CosmoandWanda/pseuds/CosmoandWanda
Summary: Adrien, a lonely merman, is retrieving a trade for his princess.





	Day 11: Mermaid

“You mean you would trade this… thing… for some fish?”

“Well, not fish specifically. I need a certain type of clam to finish this piece I’m working on,” Marinette said, ducking her head away from the golden haired boy who stared up at her. 

He looked at the item in his hand. It was a shiny small figure, too light to be made of rock but solid like it could be. It had blue eyes like hers. When he had asked for something interesting from the land world, he hadn’t been expecting this. 

“What’s this again?”

“It’s called a porcelain doll. I figured you would want something that wouldn’t get damaged under water, and this way you could also have found it in a wreck, should your dad wonder.”

Adrien smiled at her. Though he had only met this girl a handful of times, she was already more considerate than many of his acquaintances back home. Many would have sold their own fins to be on the fringes of the social group his father was head of. It was nice to have someone on his side solely for the interest in him.

Well, him and clams.

“Okay princess, you’ve got a deal! I’ll aim to have your trade in a few days, okay?”

“Thank you Adrien! I owe you one, really…”

He flicked water at her, causing her to laugh.

“The whole point of this trade was so you wouldn’t feel in debt to me! Really, it’s nice having someone to just… visit. So don’t worry about it,” he said, grinning up at her. 

It was a peculiar friendship, but as Marinette watched him dive back into the depths of the water, she couldn’t help but be thankful for it. She made her way back up to the docks, jumping from rock to rock with a small laugh. The ocean seemed so much more joyful since she came to know Adrien. The water crested and flowed as if it were laughing with her.

Once her feet touched the wooden docks she stopped, turning back to face where Adrien had been. He had seemed so wary of her when she first spotted him. It’s not like she intentionally found his hiding spot, she had just been looking for a new one herself. After the initial shock of meeting her first mermaid, she was surprised at how untrusting he was. 

The stories her parents told of a wonderful civilization under the waves didn’t seem to match Adrien’s questions- not until

“You really don’t know of my father?”

She was surprised he asked. There were rumours, of course. A fierce mermaid who snuck his way to the top of the social chain, only to ruin the lives of those who got in the way of his quest. The rumours were unclear as to what the quest was, some saying it was just power, others insisting he was searching for the sea witch. 

“I do not know your father, though I possibly know of him…”

She explained to the increasingly bright man in front of her. Every answer had his smile growing, lighting up their small cove. He paused for a moment in his interrogation, seeming to take in her presence completely. 

“Well, if you don’t know about him, what do you know about? Who are you?”

The coy smile that had crept on his face with the question caught Marinette off guard. She sputtered out a reply, blushing under his gaze. 

“I’m a, I’m just, my name is Marinette, I live in the palace…”

“A princess?” He asked, the teasing lilt of his voice giving way to awe. 

“Oh no, I’m a seamstress in the castle, but that’s very kind of you to assume,” she had replied, tapping him on the nose. 

They were both a little surprised by the familiar action, but the silence was broken by his exuberant laugh. 

“You can be my princess then!”

Every time after that, he referred to her as Princess rather than her name. She checked every day to see if Adrien was by the cove, but he only seemed to show up every few days. It was their fifth encounter that had prompted her to ask for the shells she needed. 

“You seem worried, princess,” he had said, lazily swaying his tail. Things had been quiet that day, talking replaced with her moving her hands through the sand as he watched. 

“I have to finish a very specific order but don’t have the right materials,” she said, resting her face on her knees. “An order for the actual princess.”

“What materials do you need?”

She looked at him, brow scrunched. 

“Well, really anything iridescent, but I started it using mother of pearl from shells.”

“I can get you that.”

His voice was so earnest and kind. He was excited at the prospect of helping his new friend, the one who already had listened to his stories and been mad on his behalf. It seemed fair, that this was how friends really were. 

“You don’t have to do that, I don’t want to take advantage of you!”

She had really surprised him then. Take advantage? She wasn’t trying to gain influence, he wasn’t a step in a greater plan, and she had already been so kind to him… 

“Really you’re not, but if you’d feel better then we can trade something. Something to remind me-” the words died on his lips as he flushed. 

“Something to remind me of you” had nearly slipped out, and the intention behind the statement was definitely new. New and very sudden. Could he be that quick to find interest in her? He took a breath before continuing. 

“Something to remind me of the land world, something interesting.”

Marinette looked at him intently, as if scanning his eyes for a secret truth. Eventually she nodded, letting herself smile for the first time that day. 

“Next time I see you, I’ll have something interesting to trade, okay?”

He grinned, once again lighting up their little cove. 

“Okay.”

**Author's Note:**

> Late? Yes. Short? Yes. Doesn't really show how much I love mermaids and gives no hints to the fact that I have many many mermaid stories in my head? Also yes. 
> 
> Yesterday was kinda a long day, I started making dinner at like 9PM...


End file.
